Auto and Cars

BMW Group Classic anniversaries and heritage milestones for 2020 BMW Group Classic throttles into 2020 with an impressive list of heritage milestones and anniversaries. This year, the automotive conglomerate marks 100 years since the production of the first Boxer motorcycle engine, 90 years since the advent of the BMW roadster tradition back in 1930, 80 years since the victory of BMW in the Mille Miglia race and 60 years of model and variant diversity at MINI. Birth of the Boxer engine – tribute to brilliant engineer Martin Strolle Aged 34 in 1920, Martin Strolle was an engineer working for the BMW engine development department. Because of the interdiction to produce aircraft engine in the post-war era, BMW needed a sparkle to survive, besides the ordinary production of four-cyli...

REVIEW: Is the BMW X3 still the best-in-class choice? The G01 generation of the BMW X3 has already been on the market since Summer 2017. By 2021, when it is programmed for the Life Cycle Impulse procedure, the premium midsized SAV will have a tricky challenge to accomplish with the third generation of the Mercedes-Benz GLC lurking in sight and the Audi Q5 facelift already on the market. BMW X3: The Pioneer Of Its Class BMW came up with the X3 solution back in 2003. The constructor was entering a flourishing period back then and was actively looking to establish new market segments. The X3 came up as a mobility solution for those who wanted to have a high-riding vehicle, not as large as the X5, but which was also suitable for daily city use. The X3 invented the medium class Sports Activi...

BMW Reclaims Luxury Sales Crown in the US after 4-year hiatus Yesterday, carmakers published their sales totals for the US market. Most manufacturers published record numbers, with slight increases overall for the US market. In the luxury segment, BMW managed to beat its main rival, Mercedes-Benz, for the first time since 2015. The hard efforts put in by everyone at BMW of North America finally paid off – the Bavarians announced an overall increase for 2019 of 4.4 percent in sales volume. After a 4-year hiatus, BMW is finally reclaiming the number one spot in the luxury segment in the US. The Munich-based car maker announced it sold 324,826 cars in 2019, beating Mercedes-Benz by 8,732 units. That’s a very narrow gap, mind you, and it comes after Mercedes posted a drop in sal...

The BMW X6 M50i is a surprisingly good Baby-Mobile, per Jalopnik One of the most commonly mocked BMWs is the X6. Its relative uselessness, odd-ball styling and just lack of real purpose make the BMW X6 a car that few enthusiasts seem to love. However, according to this new review from Jalopnik, the X6 M50i is very good at one thing, at least — baby-duty. In this new review from Jalopnik, Deputy Editor Michael Balaban used the BMW X6 M50i as essentially a sleep-chamber for his infant son. Which makes a ton of sense, as modern BMW luxury car cabins are silent enough to be such things. With an ultra-quiet cabin, a relatively comfortable ride and little vibration coming through the car’s suspension, the new X6 is surprisingly good a putting an infant to sleep. Like many parents,...

Video: BMW M340i drag races Audi S4, Volvo S60 and E53 AMG The new year is bringing out some interesting drag races. The first one from the guys at Carwow includes a rather curious mix of cars. Lining up at the starting line are a BMW M340i xDrive, an Audi S4, a Volvo S60 and the Mercedes-AMG E53 Coupe. While the first three could be considered direct rivals (even though the Audi is in Avant guise), the Merc is supposed to be on par with the likes of the 5 Series and A6. What makes things even more interesting is the mix of powertrains on display. We have a diesel engine going up against a hybrid and two petrol alternatives. The Audi S4 is now sold with a diesel 3-liter engine good for 347 HP and 700 Nm (516 lb-ft) of torque. That’s what Audi decided for the European market, where...

BMW gets back ahead of Mercedes-Benz in US Sales It’s been a long time since BMW beat out Mercedes-Benz in US sales. In fact, the last time the Bavarians were ahead of their German rivals was 2015, marking a four-year stint in second place. It took the final month of 2019 for BMW to jump ahead of Mercedes-Benz, by selling a very healthy 35,746 cars this past December. Following that healthy December, BMW finished 2019 by selling over 8,000 more vehicles than Mercedes-Benz, which is a nice lead. You can thank a couple of models for that impressive sales year. Both the BMW X7 and new G20-gen 3 Series have really boosted the brand’s sales figures, as both cars have become incredibly popular in the US. The X7 is the most surprising, to be honest, as it’s extremely expensiv...

Albert Biermann and Hyundai N might make a Cayman-fighter For years, BMW fans have been begging BMW’s M Division for a bespoke sports car, something not based on an existing BMW product. While we’ll be getting a bespoke M model soon enough, it’s likely to be in the form of an X8 SUV, hardly what the fans were asking for. Instead, what they wanted was something more along the lines of the Porsche Cayman or Alpine A110. Rubbing salt in the X8-sized wound is the fact that former BMW M boss Albert Biermann is very much considering building a Cayman fighter of his own… for Hyundai N. If you haven’t already heard, Albert Biermann, formerly of BMW M, is now the head of Hyundai’s N performance division. Since he’s taken over, both the i30 N and Veloste...

BMW Sales Increase 4.0% in December, 4.4 percent up in 2019 BMW sales totaled 35,746 vehicles in December 2019, an increase of 4.0 percent over the 34,357 vehicles sold in December 2018.  For the full year 2019 BMW sales increased 4.4 percent on total sales of 324,826, compared to the 311,014 vehicles sold in 2018. In 2019, BMW brand sales in the U.S. continued to rise on the strength of new model launches, including the best-selling X3 and X5 and first-ever X7.  The all-new BMW 3 Series launched in February and was a top performer in the premium sedan segment. “We’ve talked a lot over the course of the past two years about having the right product mix for the market, and we believe that with all of our recent launches, we have just that,” said Bernhard Kuhn...

How to prepare your BMW for the winter season Every time it comes, the winter  is a test for drivers. Not only because you need to adjust your driving style more carefully, but also because you have to thoroughly prepare your car to be good in shape for the cold season. Winter can be fun behind the wheel, but you certainly need to take care of some crucial aspects to make the most out of it. There are a few important things to look out for if you are to ensure a safe and pleasant ride all the times. Winter Tires Are A Must First of all, the winter tires are the most important aspect in ensuring a safe ride. The winter rubber is the perfect choice for the cold season, as it is perfectly adapted to improve safety and braking efficiency in extreme weather conditions. First of all, th...

Car and Driver puts BMW X7 against Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class Mercedes-Benz has been competing in this segment for years, previously with the GL-Class SUV. Three-row SUVs are not unfamiliar to the Stuttgart-based brand. However, they are relatively unfamiliar to BMW, as the new X7 is the brand’s first ever SUV with three dedicated rows of seating. So it’s interesting to see how the BMW X7 takes on the latest big SUV from Mercedes-Benz — the GLS-Class. Which is exactly what Car and Driver finds out in this latest test. Without spoiling too much of C&D’s comparison, as it’s worth reading if you’re in the market for a three-row SUV, the two cars are similar but offer different attributes that will be attractive to customers. In other words, there’...

BMW X7 M50i gets showcased in Alpine White with BMW Individual interior The BMW Abu Dhabi dealership is unveiling a brand new masterpiece: A BMW X7 M50i featured in Alpine White color and adorned with BMW Individual appointments. The next star of the Abu Dhabi showroom is the M Performance X7 M50i model. The luxury SAV is specced in a rather flat and uninspiring exterior color, which gets sparkled up by some additional BMW Individual options. The Alpine White is a nice color, also when you want to achieve a visible contrast like in this case. It is not the type of color I would go for, but even I have to admit that in this case, the final result looks quite remarkable. The Alpine White shade is very good at highlighting the key visual attributes of the X7 M50i (G07), like the Cerium Gr...

SPIED: BMW 7 Series seen with tweaked headlights for second facelift When BMW first facelifted the G11 7 Series, its new design was controversial, to put it lightly. Its monstrous grilles seemed to polarize a lot of the fanbase. However, one of the better looking aspects of the fresh-faced 7 Series was its new headlight design. Turns out, BMW seemed to think it could improve on those headlights even further, as it’s just given the car another facial update, which was just caught testing in the wild. (We don’t own these photos but see them here) In some new spy photos, we get to see a new BMW 7 Series with some tweaks to its headlight design, as evidenced by the camouflage on them. While we don’t know exactly how these headlights will change, we do know that they will g...

BMW i3s wins Autocar’s “City Slicker” long-term award Few cars in the Bavarian lineup are criticized as heavily as the BMW i3. It’s lack of range compared to other EVs, high price tag and sparse equipment list make it an easy target for most enthusiasts. However, as an actual car to drive in cities and around town, it’s rather excellent. Don’t just take my word for it. Take it from the former home of James May — Autocar — who gave the i3S the “City Slicker” award. “Short overhangs, great forward visibility and a raised driving position make placing the i3s incredibly easy.” said Autocar Editor Tom Morgan. According to road tester Ricky Lane, the BMW i3 “goes like a whippet for gaps in traffic”. Not sure what that means bu...

BMW E-Power Roadster – Electric Bike Just As Fast As the S 1000 RR At a recent press event, BMW Motorrad introduced the BMW E-Power Roadster Prototype. The fancy name showcases an electric bike prototype which is in the early concept stages. The E-Power Roadster Concept uses some of the engineering elements of the Vision DC Roadster concept we saw last year, but it bears little resemblance to the DC.  Instead, it gets its look from a combination of different BMW motorcycles. The front-end comes from an S 1000 R, while the rear drive is from an R1200RS. The frame has been custom-made, while the drivetrain comes from the car division. The battery pack was inherited from a 2 Series plug-in hybrid while the motor is from a China-only long wheelbase 7-series. The bike is a prototype, so...

BMW boss says no electric motorcycles for 5 years BMW unveiled their first electric motorcycle in June 2019. The Vision DC Roadster was the first of its kind from the BMW Motorrad brand and a bike that replaces the boxer engine with batteries and an electric motor. While the Vision DC Roadster lacks the old-school boxer engine, its electric powertrain echoes the past. The battery is  vertically-fitted and longitudinally-oriented where the boxer engine would have been. Like the old boxer engine, two side elements with cooling ribs flank the battery to cool it down. It’s a nod to the old boxer’s cooling elements developed by Max Friz back in 1923. The cylindrical electric motor is located under the battery and sends power to the rear wheel via universal shaft. So it&...

VIDEO: Carwow checks out the G20-gen BMW 3 Series Between all of us here at BMWBLOG, we’ve driven just about every single iteration of the new G20-gen BMW 3 Series possible. For the most part, we’ve all been happy with the new 3er, with very, very few complaints. Almost every version of the new 3 Series is fantastic and we’re not the only ones that think so, as Carwow just named it the best family car of 2019. In this new video, though, Carwow’s Mat Watson takes us through the new 3er and explains why he likes it so much. The 3 Series in this video is a BMW 320d xDrive, probably the most common and family-oriented version of the car. Despite that, it’s still a fun and engaging car to drive and that’s what makes the new 3er so good. Not only is it prac...

Video: BMW M135i xDrive gets tested on the dyno It has become an accepted practice in the automotive industry for certain car makers to underestimate the power output of their products. BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi are among the biggest offenders, but is it really a bad thing? This just allows people to brag about their car’s power output when talking to their friends. Furthermore, some would say the numbers aren’t off at all, but just that the dyno runs aren’t accurate. Be that as it may, it’s always interesting to see just how much power a car puts down in real life and not just abide by the numbers provided by the manufacturer. The guys from Evolve decided to take a brand new BMW M135i xDrive to the dyno to check out what’s really happening under the hood...

Genesis GV80 is looking like a promising BMW X5-fighter Back in 2010, at the beginning of the last decade, the thought of Hyundai developing a premium SUV to compete with the BMW X5 would have been laughable. The brand’s first true luxury car, the Hyundai Genesis, was a good car for the money but not good enough to properly take on premium brands. However, toward the end of that decade Hyundai turned Genesis into its own premium brand, not unlike Toyota’s Lexus and it’s become a genuine player in premium segments. As one last hurrah for 2019, the South Korean brand revealed its latest luxury offering — the Genesis GV80. Revealed just as 2019 was winding down, the new Genesis GV80 is the latest BMW X5-fighter and one that the Bavarians should not take lightly. Wh...

BMW i3 owner covers 277,000 kilometers on original brakes One of the advantages electric cars bring to the table is the cheap maintenance cost. Unlike conventional cars, EVs such as the BMW i3, don’t need oil changes or filter changes as it would be the case on internal combustion cars. As a matter of fact, they rarely need their brakes replaced, as they use regenerative braking especially around town. On the BMW i3, the regenerative brakes are so strong, you can basically drive the car using solely one pedal. But just how far can one go using the original brake pads and rotors? Well, the answer comes from a satisfied BMW i3 customer who managed to cover 277,000 kilometers with the original brakes. Helmut Neumann from the community of Titz in North Rhine Westphalia claims he never...

BMW extends battery warranty on i3 to 8 years or 160,000 km in Europe BMW still has big plans for its first ever all electric vehicle, the i3. Last year, the Germans announced it will be kept in production for more than the traditional 7 years, with the company saying it will keep making the revolutionary vehicle up to and including 2024. With the new year, the BMW i3 is also getting a big boost in battery warranty, to 8 years or 160,000 kilometers for the European market. According to BMW the achievable vehicle range decreases only marginally even after high mileage. Unfortunately, they didn’t offer an exact number. Furthermore, not one BMW i3 high-voltage battery has had to be replaced due to premature ageing to date. As the battery’s potential is far from being exhausted ...

Video: BMW X3 comparison vs GLC, Q5, XC60 and Macan can’t find a winner The BMW X3 is heading into 2020 waiting for its facelift to pop up. This year we’ll get to see the updated version of the current X3 as well as the plug-in hybrid model we’ve been waiting for, the xDrive30e going on sale. Even though the popular compact SUV is now entering its fourth year of production, it’s still a hell of a good car and one that sells rather well. Therefore, when the guys from Autogefuel decided to do a comparison between all the premium choices in this segment, it was bound to be included in the mix. As usual, their video is rather long but, if you’re looking for a premium compact SUV and don’t know what to choose, it will be helpful. The cars going up against the X3...

Video: Best and worst cars from the 2010s according to What Car The 2010s are now officially over and, as some Internet memes keep reminding us, we’re entering the ‘crazy ’20s’. A throwback to the roaring twenties when the world was so much different than it is today, we’ll probably hear that phrase for longer than we’d like. However, if we’re to be honest, the 2010s were still crazy, due to the massive changes that happened around the world and thanks to new technologies. From smartphones to 5G and the boom of SUV demand, the world in 2019 was drastically different to what we’ve seen in 2010. The guys from What Car? decided to put together a list of the best and worst cars that were launched over the past 10 years, as they are after all m...

BMWBLOG Podcast Episode 12 — We talk the End of a Decade and Front-Wheel Drive It’s that time of the week again — time to listen to another episode of the BMWBLOG Podcast. We’re on episode twelve now (take that, Joe Rogan) and it’s the last episode of 2019. In fact, it’s the last episode of the decade. Not that that makes any difference, as we started the podcast three months ago, but it’s still technically the last of the decade and that sounds cool, so I’m gonna say it until I can’t. Anyway, in this new episode, I talk about some of our most recent topics, such as the best BMW of the decade and front-wheel drive performance cars. Earlier in the week, we discussed some of the best BMWs of the decade and tried to narrow the list down to ju...

BMW boss Zipse finds car-free city center “worth striving for” It is rather unusual for the boss of a carmaker to talk about the benefits of car-free city centers. However, BMW boss Oliver Zipse is apparently not afraid of the current debates. In an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung, Zipse frankly explains  that he prefers to travel in Munich by subway rather than by car. In terms of environmental protection and air quality, it is only a question of intelligent urban planning to give people options other than driving. Nevertheless, Zipse does not believe in the SUV debate in Germany today, which he sees as “scaremongering” and brings a good comparison: The 15-year-old station wagon is a much bigger problem for the environment than a modern SUV with current exhaust...

VIDEO: BMW Classic wishes us Happy Holidays and Looks Back on 2019 Now that 2019 is about to end, with the near year (and a new decade) starting tomorrow, BMW Classic wanted to not only wish everyone Happy Holidays but also say thank you. It’s been a fascinating year for both BMW and its Classic’s center. Some big events across the globe were held, honoring many of BMW’s most historic cars. Cars like the 2002, 3.0 CSL and even MINI were all celebrated in 2019, marking the end of a great decade for the brand. In this new video, we get to see a few of those great moments from this past year. For instance, the Goodwood Festival of Speed and 40 Years of the BMW M1 Procar were both celebrated and seen in this new video. Also, the 60th anniversary of the Mini brand was also ...

SPIED: Rolls Royce Ghost makes another camouflaged appearance One of the cars we’re most looking forward to seeing in 2020 isn’t actually a BMW but a Rolls-Royce. The new Cullinan and Phantom have both been revealed already, which leaves the Rolls-Royce Ghost as the next big reveal for the famed British luxury brand. We know that the new Ghost will be built on the same chassis as the Phantom and it will be a bit more luxurious than before. We also now know that it will look better than before, judging by some new spy photos that have just been released. (We don’t own the photos but you can see them here) In these new photos, we see the new Rolls-Royce Ghost sitting on a car carrier, tightly squeezed underneath a BMW X5. While it’s wearing heavy camo in these phot...

Video: BMW 635CSi has 1,200 HP, burns tires in style The first BMW 6 Series was an important model for the Bavarian brand for a number of reasons. One of the most important was the fact that it introduced the first M6 into the world. Yet if you couldn’t afford a full-on M6 (M635CSi in Europe), you could get a less powerful, but still fast, BMW 635CSi, which boasted a big inline-six and a healthy amount of power. In this video, we actually get to see a BMW 635CSi with a lot more power than it originally had back in the ’80s. A lot more power. Under the hood of the BMW 635CSi hid a couple of different engines over the years. Initially, in 1978, the BMW 635CSi had an M90 straight six unit under the hood which shared a lot with the iconic M88/1 used in the M1. Later on, the BMW...

SPIED: BMW 4 Series Convertible seen on Car Carrier yet again There are a lot of interesting cars coming from BMW in 2020 but the one that most enthusiasts have their eyes on is the upcoming 4 Series. After seeing the controversial BMW Concept 4, fans have been extremely curious about the design of the new 4er, to see just how much of the Concept’s design made it to production. For those curious fans, you’re in luck, as some new spy photos have surfaced, showing off the next-gen 4 Series Convertible sitting idle on a car carrier. (We don’t own the spy photos but check them out here) In these photos, we see a heavily camouflaged 4 Series ‘Vert sitting on a truck and, while the camo covers most of the car, we can make out a few details. For instance, the photos of ...

VIDEO: Doug DeMuro says the E92 BMW M3 is the Craziest M3 Of all the generations of BMW M3, the E92 is among the most beloved. There are several reasons why the E92 M3 is so revered but the main reason is its engine. The E92 M3 is unique among M3s because it’s the only one to have a V8 and it’s a 4.0 liter naturally-aspirated V8. It’s not the most powerful or fastest M3 of all, nor was it the fastest car in its class in a straight line when it was new. However, its howling noise and free-revving nature make it one of the most desirable M3s of all. In this new video from Doug DeMuro, we learn that its engine is why he thinks it’s the craziest M3 of all. As a whole, the E92 BMW M3 is probably one of the very best M3s of all time. It’s fast enough, exciting to...